How to host a stress free desi dinner/dawat

A happy, relaxed host means happy, relaxed guests! Let us show you how it’s done.

The invitations

Send out invites well in advance. Make sure to have your complete address ,timing schedule and phone number .

Ask guests about food allergies and any food restrictions by doctors.

Send a reminder a day before about the event.

Menu planning:

Plan the menu to give yourself time to make a trip to the grocery store for shopping. Decide if you want to serve only desi or incorporate a few fusion dishes. This depends on the guest list: adventurous or standard “Roti-salan” fans? Keep four or five dishes on the menu, majority of which can be cooked in advance and frozen. This way you can simply heat them on the day of the event and garnish to look super appealing. Don’t have more than one fried item on the menu unless you want your house smelling bad.Don’t try a dish for the first time for the dinner. Stick to tried and tested ones.

Hosting Children:

Hosting little people requires special planning.

Check with parents what their children prefer to eat. Biryani is always a safe to be a hit with any group of children.

Keep plastic or paper plates/glasses for children

Set aside an area for children to eat at. Preferably where they can sit safely and to contain the unavoidable mess. You can place a plastic mat on the floor for the children to sit and eat at.

Keep a basket of toys for the children. Blocks, books and lego are a safe choice. Avoid markers (your walls will thank you), Avoid scissors and any small parts that can be choking hazards.

Before the guests arrive turn off your TV and laptops,so the children do not get busy with them.They should enjoy party with other kids ,not with gadgets.

Remove anything that you value and might be in the children’s reach.

Desi Menu choices::

Have one “Main Family’s Favourite ” dish that you know everyone will love and that can be the centre point of your spread. A few great ideas are roasted raan (leg of Mutton), Biryani,Yukhni Pulao,Beef bong Paya,whole roasted chicken or Murgh musallum ,Bihari kabab,Nihari or Haleem.

Dessert:
For many people dessert is the highlight of the desi dinner party. This is a topic for a whole new blog post. The great thing about desserts is that most can be made a day before. Do keep healthier options like deserts with fruits if possible.

Famous Pakistani desert for Dawat/Dinner party are:::

Sheer khurma

Shahi tukray

Khoobani ka meetha

Fruit Trifle

Kheer

Brownie trifle

Three days are busy for women ,who is hosting a dinner.

1,,Day before the event.

2,,,Day of the event.

3,,Day after the event.

Night before the event:

Take out the frozen food and put in the fridge to thaw.

Re think about your menu and write menu list on paper .

Take out the clothes you and your family plan to wear. Make sure that the matching dupattais ironed and the dress your child is supposed to wear still fits. Doing all this the night before saves a lot of last minute drama.

Make your sweet dish/ desert at night before the event to have chilled desert.If you have to add fruits ,then Add fruits before serving.

Clean your house.

Keep ice cube trays in freezer.

Keep water bottles in refrigerator to be chilled for guests.

Check for grocery shopping ,if you do not have any thing ,then make a list to shop early in the morning.

For Leftovers: Keep ziplocks and tuperware handy to pass on leftovers to guests or freeze it for later.

Day of the event:

Make a nice raita and salad in the morning . Chop up all the veggies and put them in a Ziploc bag; this takes up less space in the fridge and leaves you with less Tupperware to wash. Mix the dressing for the salad when the guests arrive.

Cut ginger slices, fresh corriander and lemon slices in the morning and put in sealed containers to use for garnishing the food .

Cook dishes according to your menu,,early in the morning ..

Set the table beforehand. Think where every food item will go. Put the bowl/serving tray in the spot and add a sticky note in the middle with the name of the dish.

Leave all last minute preps and get ready an hour before your guests arrive. That way even if you are running late you will be in a presentable state to receive guests and can involve them.

Check the powder room or any washroom the guests will use. Make sure there is a hand towel and soap .

Don’t use your bedroom as dumping ground for the extra living room stuff. People might need to use your room to pray, nurse a baby or change a diaper,older people can take some rest.

Heating the food before serving::If you don’t have enough chafing dishes, you can keep the food in pots and warm on the stove till right before serving. If you have an especially good looking pot or non stick karahi.you can serve right out of that! Decorate your clay handi lid or cover it with alumunium foil..Be creative!

Drinks: If you decide to serve fizzy drinks, don’t forget to keep plain /chilled water also. All that spicy food, makes people thirsty.

This is one useful post and I am making points from it…I should keep this post in reference from now on…planning is always important when you are hosting a party…love your choice of recipes under low and high budget….